The sixth stage of the Tour de France delivered significant action across the undulating landscape around Vire Normandie. This 201-kilometer parcours, featuring 3550 meters of climbing and six categorized ascents, finally saw a strong, high-quality breakaway group succeed all the way to the finish line after a frantic day of racing.
The victor from this group was Ireland`s Ben Healy of EF Education-EasyPost. The 24-year-old powerhouse launched his decisive solo attack with a bold move initiated a remarkable 41 kilometers from the finish. His sustained effort over the technical, hilly closing terrain allowed him to build a winning margin and arrive alone, claiming a prestigious Tour de France stage win. Behind him, the remnants of the breakaway finished scattered, with Quinn Simmons and Michael Storer completing the podium.
A Rider For The Hills
Healy is a rider with a proven track record on challenging, hilly courses. His palmarès includes a stage win at the 2023 Giro d`Italia, second place at the 2023 Amstel Gold Race, a notable third place behind Tadej Pogacar and Giulio Ciccone at Liège-Bastogne-Liège in 2025, fourth at Strade Bianche, and fifth at La Flèche Wallonne. His solo victory today was a testament to his attacking spirit and climbing prowess, confirming his status as one of the peloton`s most exciting talents for this type of terrain.
The Yellow Jersey Tango
While Healy enjoyed his moment of triumph, the drama for the overall classification was unfolding behind. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) was part of the day`s substantial eight-man breakaway that included strong riders such as Simon Yates (Visma-Lease a Bike). The main peloton, containing race leader Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) and his primary rival Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike), initially allowed the break a significant lead, which peaked at around five minutes.
However, as the stage progressed and Van der Poel, having committed heavily to the break, began to lose time relative to the winning move by Healy (shedding nearly four minutes to the Irishman in the final 20km), the pace in the peloton increased dramatically. Notably, Vingegaard`s Visma-Lease a Bike team took control at the front of the bunch in the final kilometers, driving a hard pace that significantly reduced the gap to the Van der Poel group.
The strategic outcome of this acceleration was finely poised. Mathieu van der Poel had started stage six trailing Tadej Pogacar by 1 minute and 28 seconds in the General Classification. By the finish line in Vire Normandie, the main peloton, with Pogacar and Vingegaard, crossed the line exactly 1 minute and 29 seconds *behind* Van der Poel`s time for the stage. The calculation was precise: Van der Poel gained exactly one second on the main contenders` group. This single second was sufficient for him to reclaim the yellow jersey, leading Tadej Pogacar overall by the narrowest possible margin of just one second.
This tactical maneuvering by the Visma-Lease a Bike squad in the closing kilometers was highly significant. By driving the pace, they effectively narrowed the gap between Van der Poel and Pogacar`s group, thereby ensuring Van der Poel took the yellow jersey rather than Pogacar retaining it or potentially seeing the jersey pass to another rider who might have gained more time. This move strategically places the responsibility of defending the race lead, along with all the associated media duties and logistical demands (podium, interviews, anti-doping controls), onto Van der Poel`s team, granting Vingegaard`s squad a tactical reprieve from leading the chase. Pogacar`s visible surge just before the finish line, a sprint often described as `piqued`, suggested he was acutely aware of the implications of this late acceleration by his rivals` team.
Jersey Shuffle
For Tadej Pogacar, stage six represented a comprehensive loss of leader`s jerseys. Having held the yellow jersey since the opening time trial and impressively worn the green (points) and polka dot (mountains) jerseys simultaneously, he lost all three. The green jersey for the sprint classification now belongs to Italy`s Jonathan Milan, while the polka dot jersey is taken by Pogacar`s own UAE Team Emirates teammate, Tim Wellens.
Brittany Beckons
Looking ahead, the Tour de France moves into the heartland of French cycling: Brittany, for stage seven. This 197-kilometer stage from Saint Malo to Mur de Bretagne (Guerledan) is dedicated to French cycling legend Bernard Hinault, passing near his hometown. The finish features the climb known as the `Breton Alpe d`Huez`, a punchy ascent of 2 kilometers averaging 6.9% but with steep gradients peaking at 15% in its initial phase. It`s a climb perfectly suited to explosive riders and notably, it was the site of Mathieu van der Poel`s memorable stage win and first career yellow jersey in 2021, where he narrowly edged out Tadej Pogacar. Stage seven promises another intense battle on a climb that looks deceptively simple but requires significant power and tactical timing.
